DUNEDIN D.L.F. LITERARY AND DEBATING CLUB.

Otago Witness, Issue 2812, 5 February 1908, Page 85

DUNEDIN D.L.F. LITERARY AND DEBATING CLUB.

Motto " Union is Strength "

The weekly meeting of the above club m» held on Tuc-day evening last m the cmb 100 m. In the unavoidable absence ot Emerald Vice-piesident Tai g es occupied t'>e cl.au for the evening. Apology was madfor the absence of T.DA, who had been called away unexpectedly from town Harry apologised al=o for the absence of oiu able secretary Cornish, who ha= been temporarily tiansfeired to Outram, and undertook his duties for the evening. Texas Jack, who was piesent at the club the first time for some few weeks, was" accorded a heaity welcome by the members. His stay here is only a =hort ore. and he pioceeds once more to OUgo Central. "The exigencies of his tiade, ' he explained. The following were the papers contnbuted. ard, needless to say, they were one and all inteieating and instructive- — Jessica. "Sympathy"; Kipmehco. "Is the Xeg^lected Factor Education?"", The Shephcidess's Fairy. "The Ethics of Friendship"; Gmha. "Tiue Fuendohip"; West Coaster, "D L.F. Mottos ' Our hearty thanks aie herewith accoided to those who thought of us this tune. Some of our comrades, however, were absent, and we hope to see their names appearing m the report next Open Meeting. Texas Jar^: a!<=o favoured 11= with an account of some of his camp experiences The question box was then introduced, and Tangle 3 made it a condition that each member was to speak on each question put. Two of the questions put may come in handy for future debates, and in. case they do I append them herewith — "Are Women More Loyal in Friendship than Men?" "Should the Young be Taught to Draw and Wrii« with Both Hands?"-

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In the debate for next evening, "Which Ha= Done More for the World — Science or Literature?" Kippiehoe was selected' to lead the former side and The Shepherdess's Fairy the latter.

Below I give a few brief extracts from, papers contributed. — "Our Dominion can at pi-esent boast that the neglected factor is not education. In the way some people look at it, it certainly is, but on the whole I think that education, to the smallest item, is not neglected. There aie. tol start with, piimary schools, which childien when they reach a certain age are forced to attend, and which they are not x'ermittad to leave until they reach another certain age But to-day eveiy parent it. eager for his children to receive a thorough and sound education, and keeps them at tne primary school until they are fit to attend the secondaiy school. The schools, colleges, and universities are now thoroughly equipped for the. training of young people m any subject they care to study. Every year the universities leceive hundreds of young men desirous of learning a profession, and every year they discharge a great number who have left tliein thoroughly equipped with the knowledge uecessaiy for them to follow it. . . . Tho education boards have not spsvrecl any expense in supplying the=e colleges with eveiything they can possibly need in order to give those willing a thorough education. Even in the public schools the}' have a truant inspector 'o see that all children attend classe° regularly. I consider education is not by any men as neglected." — Kippiehos ("Is the Factor Education.")

''The in .la who possesses a Uue diend is wealth er than he who possesses a "old mine foi what 1* gold to any man if all his fellowcreatures are his enemies "' Gold miy vanish, but a iiierd- — a truev friend — never will a3 long as life lasts. Let us tay with the pcet I? owe — " " Friendship, our only wealth, our last i'etieat and strength; Secuie against ill foitune <md the world."'

. . . A true, an ideal, friend is one who will rejoice with us in our pleasuies and •will comfort and cheer us in our daikest

hours of trouble and sorrow. In short, one who will stand by us in .ill the ups an<i downs of life. Dune Fortune may frown on us, our enermes m-ay slander us, then is the time we look for a friend, and it is then that we know who our friends leally are. Many a. human being is shipwrecked on Life' 3 troubled sea for want of a friend to liolci out « helpirg hand. When a man sees that all his fellow-creatures p.re against him. life becomes unbearable, and he caies not what short cut he takes to get away from it all. But how often we can be deceived! in a person whom we look apon as a friend — one whom we trust with our moat guarded secrets, who will appear co sincere that it seems impossible to doubt then friendship and a3 soon as we are out of hearing will betray our secret confidences and slander us. . . True friendship must be sincere, nneelfish, honest, and lasting. The person? between whom such friendships exist aro really fortunate and truly blessed.'' — Giulia ("True Friendship"). "It is often said that it is the duty and pnvilege of a friend to wain Ins friend! against his faults but I think this is a mistaken principle. The essence of the situation is lather a -oidial paitnership of which the basis is liberty. What I meaai by liberty i« not the freedom of a responsibility, but the absence of obligation. I do not, of course, mean that one is to take all he can get. but rather that one must respect Ins friend enough to keep from directing, unles. his opinion and dnection is asked for. One's duty is rather to encourage and believe u» one's friend than to disapprove and censure

urn. . . The ideal fnewd is one who loves you for what" you aie, not what y"ou might be if you would only take his advice.

The ideal is a perfect frankness and sincerity which lava b.iie the soul, and it' is without any sham or misunderstanding. A fuendship of this kird is one of the purest, bughtest, ard strongest things of the world. Yet how rare it is 1 . The best friendships are "more often those that seem at fust sight dully made for us by the habit snd pioximity. and which reveal to us by slow degrees their beauty and their worth. ''